The Magician of Imardin
by WifeOfSatan
Summary: So we know the stories of the BMT by heart, but what about from Akkarin's viewpoint? It's just too soon to say "goodbye".  New chapter - 12/10/10
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: Every character, every storyline that matches with the original books all belong to Trudi Canavan. If you happen to stumble across this without reading the books, go read them! If you don't have the books to hand to read as well, go buy them! If you like the books, shout it from the rooftops (and Twitter and Facebook statuses). Let's make it as popular as Twilight and Harry Potter so that they'll make it into one or more films!**

The wind blew cold around The High Lord as he stood on the rooftop of the University building. A sudden gust blew the hood of his black robes back off his head and threatened to rip the ribbon from his ponytail. As the gust died as quickly as it had begun, Akkarin sighed, pulled his hood back over his head and drew on a little magic to create a wind shield around him. The rooftop was a solitary place and allowed him to feel human once in a while. The fresh air was a nice change to the magically heated, wind-free air he normally used with people around. It took little magical effort to reinforce the impenetrable High Lord persona he had created five years ago, but emotionally he found it wearing.

It had been colder this time last year, with snow threatening to make the magicians even grumpier about the purge. At least the improved weather meant the atmosphere felt more upbeat. It would be over in a matter of hours anyway and they would all be back inside the Guild walls with their grumbles forgotten after an hour of warmth and wine.

While the yearly purge of the slums was a minor concern to Akkarin, the ripples caused within the Guild were more of a headache than he felt necessary. Firstly, it left approximately one hundred novices to their own devices. Albeit a freeday when most novices would be studying, but with a severely reduced number of magicians left on site it usually led to a few altercations between first year novices as they used the opportunity to misuse their magic with little fear of getting caught. The task of keeping control on the day of the purge was left to the Guild's Administrator, and Akkarin's best friend, Lord Lorlen, who would patrol the corridors with any magicians who had opted out of the purge until sunset when the rest of the Guild returned.

Akkarin had returned to the Guild after his morning meeting with the King to confirm the Purge was going ahead. Akkarin had not questioned the purge for the first three years, but things had changed in the last couple of years. He had seen the ripples for himself each year, plus there were bigger risks to removing your more young and capable magicians from the Guild and placing them in the slums for a day. He knew better than to really push the King to stop the Purge, it would mean answering difficult questions that he hoped to never be asked. He had started to move towards asking to only send half the Magicians, thus keeping half at the Guild, but this year the King had also ordered a clear out of the North Quarter stayhouses, which meant more people on the streets, which meant all capable magicians were needed.

Akkarin was rarely required on these days as The High Lord didn't deal with petty novice disputes, but he found that on the day of the purge his senses were always more acute, perhaps from his awareness of the dangers of an essentially empty guild. The smallest use of unexpected magic made him jumpy, so he would escape to the rooftop where a restricted number of people could come. That way he wouldn't betray his outward persona when reacting to the detection of any stray use of magic.

As he stood on the rooftop looking out across the Palace and out towards the Marina, he could sense the faint hum of the Magicians' protective shields being held in the three city squares, one each in the north, west and south quarters. Akkarin didn't really know what it was like to be down there in the purge. Although they had begun thirty years earlier under the command of the previous King, novices weren't involved. Akkarin had left Imardin for Elyne straight after graduating in pursuit of knowledge and had been made High Lord in the year he returned. For such reasons he had never witnessed the full event of the Purge.

His thoughts were interrupted by the door to the rooftop opening.

"Ah, Akkarin, I thought I'd find you here", the blue-robed administrator sighed.

Akkarin looked closely at Lorlen, he looked tired despite the day being young.

"What can I do for you old friend? You look as though you could do with a purge of the Guild and a good night's sleep!"

Lorlen laughed wearily, "A purge of our little family? Don't tempt me. How come you get to spend your day up here away from it all, while I have to try and keep our newest members under control?"

"I would offer to swap but I fear that you cope so much better than I in this situation" replied Akkarin relaxing back onto the rooftop railing, staring out towards the North Quarter. Lorlen sighed again in resignation and joined his friend in a moment of quiet comfort.

Just then, Akkarin felt a loud buzz as his skin prickled with the use of unexpected magic. Lorlen jumped as his companion abruptly stood up and looked out towards the Northern Quarter properly as if looking for something.

"Akkarin, what is it?"

"I'm not sure. Can you find out if anyone had detected a novice using magic on the grounds?"

_- Guild Monitors! Has anyone -_

Lorlen's mental call was interrupted by a cacophony of other mental communications. The conversations were confused and communicated a strong emotion of surprise and fear. The magicians in the North Square were trying to make sense of something, but Akkarin couldn't work out what. Something about a stone? A second later all communication died and the silence was followed with a very strong buzz of magic that made Akkarin cringe and rub his temples. What was going on? As soon as the buzz died away his mind was assaulted with a barrage of mental calls between the magicians, again full of confusion. Attempting to gain some control over the mental barrage of messages, he turned to Lorlen and found him with his eyes screwed closed and rubbing his temples as well.

_- Magicians! Cease your mental calls!_ Akkarin sent out. The communications whimpered to an end quickly. He could now faintly hear a commotion coming from the North Quarter, mostly screaming.

- _Lord Balkan!_

_- Yes, High Lord?_

_- What is going on down there?_

_- We may have a problem, High Lord._

_- I gathered that much. Can you elaborate?_

_- Yes, Sorry, High Lord. We appear to have a rogue magician out here. But we've lost her in the panic. Lord Fergun has been hit. We may also have a secondary issue to address._

Akkarin was sent a mental image of a charred corpse lying in the square with a crowd of people fleeing in all directions.

Akkarin's heart was beating fast as he tried to think calmly. A rogue magician? He knew of one who was protected by the Thieves, but he was harmless enough. Had he missed a new Magician arriving in town? What danger was the Guild in? And what on earth had happened to result in a corpse?

He realised he'd been quiet for a little while, and Lorlen was looking at him as if to get his attention.

"Is it safe for them to come back here, or do we need to start searching immediately?"

_- Lord Balkan!_

_- Yes, High Lord._

_- What is your assessment of the current situation? Do you wish to stay or return?_

_- There is nothing we can do here, High Lord. Lord Fergun needs medical attention and we have little hope of finding her right now. We would be better off regrouping._

_- Very well. Inform all magicians to report to the Guildhall upon their return._

_- Yes, High Lord._

"Well," Akkarin turned his attention back to Lorlen, "It looks as though you won't be getting your much needed sleep tonight after all! Do you wish to reconsider our guild purge idea?" He smiled wryly and wished his could do more for his friend. His mind turned back to how little information he had and began to worry about what it meant. Was it time already? How much danger were they in?

"Lorlen, I'll inform the King while you get an initial idea of what happened before the meet."

"I get all the fun jobs" grumbled Lorlen, as they made their way towards the door to the rooftop.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Every character, every storyline that matches with the original books all belong to Trudi Canavan. If you happen to stumble across this without reading the books, go read them! If you don't have the books to hand to read as well, go buy them! If you like the books, shout it from the rooftops (and Twitter and Facebook statuses). Let's make it as popular as Twilight and Harry Potter so that they'll make it into one or more films!**

**I am also attempting to not repeat much of the originals except where necessary, so you may need the books on hand for reference (what an excuse to read them again and again!)**

Akkarin sat in the Royal coach opposite the King's advisers. A little younger than Akkarin, the men were both magicians and had a greater understanding of what would be discussed at the Meet that evening than the King. Akkarin also knew them to be of a calmer frame of mind than the young King and therefore less prone to extreme reactionary decisions. He had been relieved when the King had chosen to stay at the Palace and send his advisers in his place. It meant Akkarin had more control of the situation.

They rode the short distance between the Palace and the Guild in silence each aware of the other's status. To an outsider, the two roles could be thought of as worlds apart, with the High Lord in his intimidating black robes and the King's Advisers in their red warrior robes adorned with gold sashes, but both answered directly to King Merin and were at the mercy of his wishes.

Knowing he had a little time and wanting peace and quiet to sift through what he knew already and what he didn't need to divulge, Akkarin had chosen to walk to the Palace using an array of underground tunnels that no one used apart from him and the Thieves. They had an understanding that enabled both to use the tunnels freely. This enabled him to catch a ride back with the advisors thus keeping them within his ear shot at all times.

The Guildhall was already filling up when the coach arrived. Not wanting to create a scene quite yet, the High Lord led the King's Advisors to their seats at the front of the hall via a side corridor and in through a less obvious and attention grabbing doorway. They quietly took their seats and awaited the arrival of Administrator Lorlen.

The large cavernous hall was filled with magicians standing around in small groups, each discussing the events of the purge. Lorlen was currently in his office discussing the events with Lord Rothen, the magician who claimed to have seen the rogue. The Higher Magicians were standing in a group off to Akkarin's left, and were being filled in on the day's events by Lord Balkan, Head of Warriors. Keeping his head down under his hood, Akkarin listened in on their discussion and watched them out of the corner of his eye. The Head of Healing, Lady Vinara had gone pale as Lord Balkan retold the events that led to the charred corpse. Lord Sarrin, Head of Alchemy, on the other hand, seemed unaffected by the description of events, nodding his head gently as if to encourage Lord Balkan to continue.

Akkarin registered a change in the atmosphere in the hall and gently turned his attention to the main door. Lord Rothen entered; a middle aged magician, respected by most Magicians in the guild, known for his popularity in teaching Alchemy Studies and for taking on guardianship of difficult novices. Akkarin had great respect for the man who demonstrated strong morals and rarely showed a public dislike for other magicians, no matter how much they deserved it. He watched as Rothen was joined by a taller, younger gentleman in purple robes; Lord Dannyl, Rothen's last novice. He was a solitary man, which always surprised Akkarin due to his obvious energy for life and gossip.

Lord Dannyl had started as a novice a few years behind Akkarin, and while the two had never crossed paths, Akkarin was all too aware of the rumours that had been spread about Dannyl and an older novice within his first year. No one had proven whether the rumours were true or not, but Akkarin had his suspicions. Perhaps everyone has something to hide, not just himself?

Akkarin dropped his head a little further as Rothen and Dannyl turned to look in his direction. Their gaze went over his head as they registered the presence of the King's Magicians in the room. He was amused by the lack of concern shown on their faces by their presence.

The magicians all began moving to their seats as Lorlen appeared in the room, made his way down to the front and rang the gong. Despite only having spoken to him a few hours before, Akkarin was shocked by how tired and grave his friend was looking. He really needed to do something to help him out, but what could be done? He had already assigned him Lord Osen as his assistant and Osen was very efficient. He hoped that his friend was as strong as he thought, and that the Guild had as much respect for him as Akkarin did, because all of it was about to be put to the test as Lorlen took command of the biggest problem the Guild had knowingly faced since their promotions to High Lord and Administrator.

Akkarin gently lifted his head so that he could see all the Magicians in the hall while Lorlen opened the meeting. Lord Rothen was called to the front to bear witness to the events of the day and Akkarin listened carefully as the day was retold.

Rothen told of a blue flash of magic that accompanied a stone which made its way through their protective barrier and met with Lord Fergun's head. Akkarin inwardly smiled at this image. Lord Fergun was a pretentious magician who made up for his weakness in power by bullying others. Unfortunately there were too many magicians who felt superior to anyone outside of the privileged lives led by those of the rich houses of Imardin.

Akkarin matched up his memories of the morning with the events described by Rothen. After the initial buzz which must have been the rogue magic, there was mayhem as everyone tried to identify the rogue. Rothen had pointed out someone in the crowd and many magicians had retaliated, which accounted for the second more powerful buzz of magic he had felt. Lorlen called upon Lord Balkan to confirm the numbers and events. Nineteen magicians had retaliated. No one had witnessed the combination of power of that many magicians before. _No one here but me_, thought Akkarin grimly.

His attention was drawn away from the discussion as he pondered on the possibilities though. Enough magicians, all using the same strike, combining to create one powerful and deadly strike. Would it be enough? How much power had they used? He closed his eyes and pushed out his senses to feel how much magical energy was in the room. A fair amount, but then there were a lot more magicians here than just the nineteen who were involved directly. It was impossible to call. He sighed inwardly.

He tuned back into the meet which had moved on to the whereabouts of the rogue magician. This was what he'd been waiting for. He needed more information to work out the level of danger this magician posed. The higher magicians discussed the purpose of using a stone to hide the magical strike. _Not the usual tactics of a dangerous magician_, he thought, _which would hopefully rule out the biggest threat_. Akkarin sifted through his thoughts tracking any rogue magicians that might be in Imardin. Senfel hadn't practised magic since he went into hiding with the Thieves, why would he start now? It was unlikely to be him, and given his lack of using magic, there was no need to highlight him after all these years. Plus he'd then have to explain how his predecessor overlooked his disappearance. This was not the time.

If someone was training a magician in the slums he would have sensed it before today. So whoever it was must be new in town or just new. As he mulled this over, Lord Rothen called upon Lord Sorlend, the historian, to explain how centuries ago people might develop their magical powers naturally if the power was strong enough. He explained how dangerous it would be if the girl lost control of her powers. Akkarin wondered how strong these powers would have to be in order to surface of their own accord. Would she be stronger than most magicians in the Guild? He had little concern that she would be stronger than him, but it would be interesting to know for future reference.

A murmur across the hall was silenced by Lorlen as Lord Balkan suggested a systematic search of the slums. Akkarin knew to keep his mouth shut for now but he feared the consequences of such an action. What if she wasn't new to magic, but a trained magician from out of town? This could be very dangerous. He'd managed to keep them safe until now.

Lorlen turned to face Akkarin and, addressing the King's advisers, requested the assistance of the Guards. After a short silence Akkarin heard one of the advisors grant the request. Now what could he do? He couldn't be publicly seen assisting with the search, the High Lord doesn't do such tasks, but if the dangers were much greater than anticipated… he could only hope that the day's search was less than fruitful, leaving him to search on his own at night.

Akkarin pulled his focus back to the room and re-schooled his frown into his usual stare just as Lord Dannyl stood up to suggest entering the slums in disguise. The thought of the more pretentious magicians walking around in threadbare and smelly cloaks threatened to make him snort against his wishes. Swallowing his amusement he hoped that Lorlen would have enough sense to push the idea aside, though Akkarin made a mental note that Lord Dannyl might be useful in the future for such ideas. Fortunately, before Lorlen could reply Lord Balkan interrupted with his firm disagreement to the idea which was backed up by murmurs in the seats and then rationalised by Lorlen.

Rothen was asked to recall the appearance of the girl. Akkarin leaned forward minutely as an image of a small, skinny girl with a thin, pale skinned childlike face, and boyish Kyralian hair poking out from a headscarf formed into existence in front of him. Akkarin realised he'd been holding his breath expecting to see the golden skinned features of a magician from the neighbouring country of Sachaka. The danger he had worried so much about had passed. The issue was home grown and he could relax knowing he was safe for a little longer. He let out his breath silently, slowly sat back in his chair and carefully looked around to check that no one had seen him looking so intensely at the image. He needn't have worried. All eyes were on the image of the girl.

The hall erupted as the discussion turned towards what to do with the girl if found before she lost control of her powers. Given that she was from the slums Akkarin was surprised to hear some of the magicians consider the possibility of accepting her into the Guild. Then he heard the harsh words of Lord Sarrin, "Strength is no blessing if a magician proves corrupt", Akkarin shuddered, "How would we know if she would value our pledge". _How do you know if you would value the pledge if it was a choice between living or dying?_ thought Akkarin bitterly. Seeing the mixed responses from the magicians, Akkarin felt his stomach twist with a mixture of hatred and hope. His thoughts sank deep into the place where he was loneliest and the despair he usually hid so well threatened to bubble to the surface. Alerted to the movement of Lorlen turning in his direction once again, Akkarin shook himself mentally. _This is no place to lose it, Akkarin_.

"High Lord," Lorlen addressed him, "have you any reason to suspect there are rogue magicians in the slums?"

_Apart from harmless old Senfel?_ "No, there are no rogues in the slums."

Lorlen nodded and turned back to the hall. Akkarin made himself focus on what he was saying if only to keep himself in the here and now. Lorlen declared the search to begin at the fourth hour tomorrow and closed the meet.

Akkarin watched as the hall appeared to stand up en masse like foam at the base of a waterfall, the colours of red, green and purple mixing together. He stood to confirm with the King's advisors that they had all the information they required before escorting them back to the doorway through which they had entered and to the coach awaiting them at the side exit.

He was briefly tempted to return directly to his quarters, but knew Lorlen would need rescuing so headed back inside. Finding him surrounded by the Higher Magicians and looking like he needed a strong drink, Akkarin silently placed himself behind Lord Balkan before announcing his arrival. "Administrator", he said in his most intimidating voice, causing Lord Balkan to jump much to his amusement, "I believe we have much to discuss, in private." Lord Balkan quickly stepped aside to let the High Lord pass and bowed with the other Higher Magicians. Akkarin saw the thanks in Lorlen's eyes as they made their way out of the hall.

"You have a busy day ahead of you, old friend. Let's hope it is not too late."

"What if we don't find her?" Lorlen rubbed his temples and nodded to Dannyl as he let them pass. Akkarin gave a low laugh, "Oh, you'll find her, one way or the other – though I'd say by tomorrow most will be in favour of the more spectacular, less fragrant alternative." Akkarin snorted as he thought of how Lord Fergun would view dressing in disguise to enter the slums.

"Come my friend, you need sleep, no more paperwork for you tonight", Akkarin herded Lorlen towards his residence and away from his office, doing what little he could for his friend.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Every character, every storyline that matches with the original books all belong to Trudi Canavan. If you happen to stumble across this without reading the books, go read them! If you don't have the books to hand to read as well, go buy them! If you like the books, shout it from the rooftops (and Twitter and Facebook statuses). Let's make it as popular as Twilight and Harry Potter so that they'll make it into one or more films!**

**I am also attempting to not repeat much of the originals except where necessary, so you may need the books on hand for reference (what an excuse to read them again and again!)**

*** Thank you to all the reviews so far, I really appreciate it! This chapter has been particularly hard as there is little to go on it the book, so I hope it's okay!***

Akkarin had slept badly, again. If he didn't always look so tired in the mornings he'd think he was a light sleeper. He knew better though. The nightmares had been worse than normal, with his tormentor's face burning into his memory again and again. His servant, Takan, had offered to make up a sleeping draught to help him sleep, but he had declined wanting to be aware enough of any magic being used outside of the Guild. Though the night had been silent, he had only been able to lie down for a few hours. Akkarin now drew on a little magic to chase away the tiredness both mentally and physically. This was not a good time for the Guild magicians to think he was showing any form of weakness.

He got up and dressed in his robes and had a shave. Making his way down the stairs he opened the door of the High Lord's residence and made his way through the Guild's gardens heading for the baths. The sun had barely risen yet and Akkarin had a good hour before anyone else would be up.

After a good soak in the university baths, Akkarin made his way back towards the University across the courtyard and past the fountain. Servants had risen now and were moving about their daily routines. Akkarin had grown up in the rich houses of Imardin and was used to servants moving around without drawing attention to themselves. He found it amusing when magicians behaved the same with him around though, if a little lonely. _Better to be lonely than betrayed_, he reminded himself.

He wondered if Lorlen was up yet, and hoped that he had managed to get some sleep last night. Today would be a long one, especially if the search was successful. Not wanting to disturb him if he was still asleep, Akkarin entered the University via the back doors and finding himself in an empty corridor, slipped down a side corridor towards the hidden passages that circled the interior of the building across all three floors.

He knew these passages like the back of his hand after spending a fair amount of his novice years using them to play pranks on people and hiding from various Professors. Now he used them to appear next to people unexpectedly, thus reinforcing the impression of omnipotence and omnipresence. He also did a weekly check of the most inner corridors partly to keep himself busy and partly to ensure no one had compromised them. He knew other magicians knew of the first ring of corridors but he didn't know how many knew of the second ring hidden within those. He had only found the map to the inner ones a few years ago, and had hidden it well since.

Making his way along the corridors he took a left and a left again. He took the first door he came to and made his way through a book store before heading out the other side and taking a right. One more right turn and two pin points of light confirmed that he had found the door he was looking for. Akkarin carefully looked through the holes beyond into the room behind them, Lorlen's office. No one was there, so he opened the door and stepped in to the room. He turned and shut the door behind him, taking a moment to look at the painting that covered the door. He was still astonished that Lorlen hadn't realised that it existed in all this time; he was a better prankster than he gave himself credit for!

While Akkarin waited for Lorlen to appear, he amused himself by reading some of the mail on Lorlen's desk. Various requests for supplies, some letters from the houses requesting special treatment of their loved ones - the usual mundane stuff that made their little family so mind numbingly draining. And yet, Akkarin envied Lorlen. Despite it all, he still had it easiest of the two of them. Not that he could persuade him of that. Still it had been good to have his friend as his closest colleague for the past two years; it had not been anywhere near as much fun with the previous administrator.

It wasn't long to wait before he heard two sets of familiar footsteps arriving outside the door. He shook himself out and took up the intimidating stance of the High Lord and moved himself in to the corner out of direct view from the door. If it had just been Lorlen he wouldn't have bothered, but letting more people than Lorlen see the relaxed High Lord simply wasn't an option. _Plus it's the only bit of fun I get these days, _he thought dryly.

Lorlen and Osen entered, busily discussing the procedures for the day ahead. Neither of them noticed Akkarin in the corner for a surprising amount of time. Akkarin thought he might have to cough soon just to announce his presence. Lord Osen still had his back to him as Lorlen sat down at his desk only to jump straight back up as he saw Akkarin in the corner. "High Lord" he bowed hurriedly. Akkarin registered Lord Osen following suit as quickly as possible. He smiled to himself and saw the question in Lorlen's eyes: could it wait? Given that he wasn't here for anything in particular, he nodded and headed for the main door. As he closed it behind him he heard the two men start up their discussions again.

Not wanting to be seen eavesdropping outside the main door, Akkarin made his way back down the side corridors and found his way back to the painting where he listened to the plans for the day.

Eventually the two men left the office to start the search and Akkarin headed up to the roof top for some air.

As the day wore on, Akkarin hadn't heard any mental communications that suggested the girl had been found. He hadn't felt any more magic pulses and he was bored. The magicians had started to return a few hours after lunch grumbling of cold and the smell. He wasn't sure the baths had ever been so busy! Heading back down through the university building Akkarin headed back through the gardens towards his residence.

Once inside, his servant Takan, met him, took his outer robes and informed him dinner would be ready at sunset. Nodding in response, he headed up the stairs to his library which doubled as his study. Akkarin took a bottle of his favourite Elyne Wine from the cupboard along with a glass and sat himself down at his desk. He sighed as he looked at the pile of letters that had accumulated over the last few days. Flicking through them, he pulled out the ones that had House seals on as they were unlikely to be of any major concern. The first was from the House of Paren – an invite to their winter celebrations, _followed by at least one marriage proposal I'm sure_.

As a child he had loved the parties the Houses held, full of foreign foods and young women to play tricks on. He had attended a few when he returned from his travels just to try feeling normal again, plus he felt a sense of duty to the Guild to show his face once in a while. Yet the women seemed to just drape off him now and once the marriage proposals started he quickly found himself declining any requests to visit the houses in an unofficial capacity.

A familiar knock at the front door announced the arrival of Lorlen. Akkarin used a little magic to open the door for him.

_- In the library, Lorlen._

He heard the footsteps coming up the staircase and stood up to get another glass out for his companion. The debrief Meet must have just finished. Lorlen would fill him in.

The door to the library opened and in walked Lorlen looking downcast.

"No success then?" Akkarin asked wryly.

"Now, what would you give that impression?" retorted Lorlen, sinking down into an arm chair. Akkarin poured him a drink and walked over to pass it to him before taking a seat back at his desk.

"The King's Advisor announced at today's debriefing that if the rogue was a natural developer, he wanted her trained." Lorlen explained.

"Under his control or not at all…" Akkarin muttered.

Lorlen looked up at his friend. "We had little success today, someone is keeping her hidden well and we can't detect any more magic. Have you.. felt.. anything today?"

Akkarin shook his head in response. "I'm sure tomorrow will be better."

"Not with the reduced numbers we have. Many magicians withdrew their help in the search after the announcement."

Akkarin felt his anger rise at the petulance and childishness of the magicians. It confirmed to him the narrow mindedness of them all and he felt his resolve harden him further.

"We had a surprising boost from Lord Fergun though", Lorlen broke through Akkarin's thoughts. "He seems to want her found as much as Rothen."

Akkarin was surprised at this news, _why the interest Fergun?_ "You're probably going to need to keep an eye on that one."

"Just one more thing to add to the list," Lorlen sighed and closed his eyes.

Akkarin watched his friend as they sat in companionable silence for a few minutes. He felt sorrow for his friend and sadness for the divide he knew existed between them. He wished he could tell him more about his travels in the years they had been separated, but somehow he knew Lorlen was too untainted to fully understand why he had done what he did. He could never trust him with that knowledge. He couldn't trust anyone but Takan who had been there with him through it all. He knew Lorlen felt annoyance that he would avoid any questions about his travels, putting strain on their friendship, but it was the only way.

Eventually Lorlen opened his eyes and met Akkarin's. His expression wore a faint smile, "There are advantages to having your best friend as the High Lord," he said, "I'm grateful for the times I can come here and just relax without any real worries".

Akkarin just smiled a half smile and invited Lorlen to stay for dinner. Lorlen declined politely, excusing himself to sort out arrangements for the search tomorrow. Finishing his wine quickly, Lorlen headed downstairs back to his office.

Akkarin had half an hour before dinner so sifted through more of his mail. He spotted the seal of the Thieves, and holding his breath, opened it.

_High Lord,_

_We have no further news about our usual correspondence topic. _

_I have received news that one of your magicians tried to make contact with us via the Guards today. The thief who was contacted was unaware of our arrangement and sent the guards away with a clear message not to be disturbed again._

_It was unclear if the magician, Lord Dannyl, was acting under your orders or not. As you normally contact us directly, I hope our arrangement has not been compromised._

_We will continue as per normal unless we hear otherwise._

_Thief Ravi_

Akkarin put the letter down and sighed. He would need to keep a closer eye on Dannyl, his ideas were good, but would get him into difficult situations if not controlled. Writing a quick response to Ravi, he mulled over the idea of letting Lord Dannyl work with the Thieves. Given the lack of progress today, perhaps it might prove useful after all. Provided it didn't look as though he had anything to do with it.

Sealing the letter he took it to the dining room for Takan who would take it to a scout in the tunnels.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Every character, every storyline that matches with the original books all belong to Trudi Canavan. If you happen to stumble across this without reading the books, go read them! If you don't have the books to hand to read as well, go buy them! If you like the books, shout it from the rooftops (and Twitter and Facebook statuses). Let's make it as popular as Twilight and Harry Potter so that they'll make it into one or more films!**

*** Once again, glad you're enjoying it. I can't appear to login and stay logged in, so I can't answer reviews directly. Nhu Angel: Can you give me a page reference for the numbers of magicians in the purge pls? I've tried to remain faithful, but I found little reference to the purge, though it is suggested some can opt out in the Novice, the numbers in The Magicians' Guild would suggest around 9 people on each side of the North square and at least 19 sent a strike on the first purge. **

**I also had to make a slight change to Chapter 2 as I worked out that Dannyl must have been in the same year as Akkarin and Lorlen. Doh!***

The magicians had headed out later today than the previous morning. Akkarin had returned to the residence after attending the briefing meet. Lorlen had requested his attendance to try and reinforce the importance of finding the girl before she lost control. He hadn't been required to say anything, just "lend his presence" as Lorlen had put it.

Akkarin had spent his day checking the inner corridors to keep busy. He made sure to "pop up unexpectedly" near some novices every so often to remind them to behave themselves while the main core of the magicians were off site. Some lessons had resumed – those magicians who had excused themselves from the search were required to teach their classes as well as cover those classes run by magicians out searching. He and Lorlen had agreed this was the most productive and non-antagonistic punishment they could deal out.

After checking the first floor tunnels, Akkarin decided to drop in on Lorlen to see if he's received any non-mental communications. He decided to be nice and enter the normal way for once. He knocked firmly and as the door swung inwards, he stepped over the threshold.

"Nothing yet Akkarin" Lorlen said without looking up.

Smirking at how well Lorlen knew him in that regard, Akkarin nodded and started to head out the door.

"You should come to the Night Room tonight; you know it's been two months since you were last there. Plus it would save me time from filling you in if you can get it first hand." Lorlen looked up at the High Lord, cringing ever so slightly at the possible response to being managed. While he and Lorlen were best friends, Akkarin knew he still looked intimidating standing tall in his black robes.

Mulling it over, Akkarin considered it. He hadn't been in a very long time. Perhaps it would be good to get out a bit.

"I will see you there at Sunset."

He strode out of the door closing it behind him.

oooOOOooo

As Akkarin made his way back to his residence he felt a buzz of magic in the air. It was gentler than the first, and it lingered for a minute or two. Not dissimilar to other pulses of magic he'd felt before, yet different in its purpose. He couldn't be sure whether it was the girl or someone else. He'd have to head into the tunnels himself to be sure.

oooOOOooo

A threadbare cloak covered Akkarin's black robes as he made his way into the tunnels via an entrance in the underground room in his residence. Removing the magical barriers as he went along, he tried to recall roughly where he'd sensed the magic and turn the next right towards the Northern Quarter. He nodded to the tunnel scouts as they stepped out of his way.

Turning the next corner, Akkarin heard voices in the next tunnel. Light flared into existence at the corner. Swearing to himself, he looked around him and spotted an alcove a few metres back. Throwing himself into it he conjured up two illusions : one a brick wall to cover the alcove, the other a brick wall just ahead of his hiding place across the tunnel in the hope that the thieves would be confused by the dead end and re-track their steps, giving him a little time to get away unseen.

Akkarin's eyes widened in surprise as a magically created globe light appeared instead of the lantern he was expecting. Behind it were the tall, slim features of Lord Dannyl and the older figure of Lord Rothen. _Too daring, Dannyl_, he thought. There was no way he could explain why he was in the tunnels, and just hoped that the illusions were good enough to discourage them.

He heard the frustration in Dannyl's voice as they reached the first brick wall. Not wanting to peek around the corner, he waited until he heard the footsteps turn away and disappear back down the tunnel. Releasing his breath, Akkarin extended his senses to check which direction they were heading in. He felt two magical presences heading back around the corner and then turn left. To be on the safe side he spread his senses a little more. He didn't want to happen upon other magicians who may be down here. He may not be so lucky next time.

A slight flicker, there. Solitary and moving rapidly away from the two magicians. Akkarin felt the level of magical power. Reasonable, but not so big as to be a danger. Definitely flickering, not yet under control. He'd found her. So close. Akkarin stepped out of his alcove and started to follow the presence. Before he reached the corner he stopped abruptly.

_And how will you explain that one to the Guild members?_ He asked himself just in time. Sighing, he did a final status check on the power he felt. It wasn't anywhere near bursting point yet, and the power wasn't yet big enough to take out more than a room should she lose control faster than they expected. If that's all they had to worry about he could afford to leave it to Lord Rothen to find her yet.

oooOOOooo

Akkarin struggled to force himself to sit still and appear unbothered by his inflicted companion in the night room. While he could tolerate most people, Lord Fergun was really trying him tonight. His obvious distain for anyone lower than the Houses and obvious delight in describing the terrible conditions of the slum houses he'd invaded during the day set Akkarin's teeth on edge. He tried to concentrate on the glass in his hand, relaxing the muscles to avoid smashing it. He attempted to block out Fergun's droning by scanning who was present in the room. Akkarin thought about how long it had been since he'd come to the night room. Looking around the room he assessed who were gossips, who were catching up, and which magicians were just there to hear the snippets of gossip that were fuelled in this very room. He found amusement in the variety of expressions worn on various members' faces as a tale was told.

He turned his attention back to Lorlen and Fergun. The advantage to having Lord Fergun force himself upon his company was that other magicians seemed less eager to come and ask the High Lord questions right now, not that they would be that eager even with Fergun absent. Perhaps his face was showing more than he thought; he relaxed his jaw and closed his eyes for a second.

As he opened his eyes, he caught sight of Lord Rothen and Lord Dannyl entering the room. "Lorlen, you wished to speak to Lord Rothen and Lord Dannyl," he cut across Fergun. Lorlen looked up and towards the door.

_- Dannyl. Rothen. I would like to speak to you. _Lorlen sent.

Akkarin saw the surprise flicker across Dannyl's face while sighing as Fergun continued on his rampage of the slums as if The High Lord hadn't even spoken. Lorlen was coping on his own and Akkarin would swear that he was even enjoying making Fergun think hard about how exactly the slums could be practically cleared.

"The houses are not particularly well made, and it would take little effort to collapse the tunnels beneath them." Akkarin tuned back into Fergun's proposals at the mention of the tunnels.

"But every city grows and expands" debated Lorlen, "It is only natural that people build outside the walls when there is no longer room inside them. There are some areas in the slums that look little different to the quarters. The buildings are well made and the streets have effective drainage. The occupants of these areas have started referring to the slums as the Outer Circle."

Fergun leaned forward, speaking more confidently,

"But even those houses have hidden passages beneath them. I assure you, their occupants are the most suspicious people. Any house built on top of such tunnels should be assumed to be a part of a criminal conspiracy and torn down."

Akkarin couldn't help raising his eyebrows in response to this statement. _That would include the palace and the guild then._

Lorlen had noticed the High Lord's change of expression and Akkarin noted the amusement on his face. Diplomatically avoiding any further discussion on the matter, Lorlen turned to greet their new guests.

Akkarin took the opportunity to neutralise his expression while the formal greetings took place, inclining his head slightly in response to Rothen's greeting. Half watching the various exchanges between the four magicians, Akkarin was impressed by Dannyl's ability to keep a neutral expression as Fergun greeted Rothen only. Perhaps Dannyl's skills are more wide ranging than just making his office messy. Keen initiative, the ability to keep his thoughts to himself, a solitary yet engaging manner; _definitely one to consider, _Akkarin mused.

As if sensing his assessment of him, Dannyl looked at the High Lord and Akkarin saw a slight nervousness pass over his face before it was masked again. Akkarin was amused to see that he still made Dannyl nervous. He turned his attentions back to Rothen who was filling them in on the day's search. Rothen mentioned the thieves. _So they were still trying to make contact?_ wondered Akkarin. _They must have either had connections or been lucky to get down into those tunnels without being attacked earlier._ Yet Rothen sidestepped any possible connection and moved to propose a reward instead. _Not willing to share that much information yet then_, thought Akkarin. At Fergun's suggestion of fining anyone hindering the proceedings, Akkarin gritted his teeth and wondered how he hadn't lost his temper in the five years he'd been High Lord.

Dannyl continued to surprise the High Lord with his suggestions for putting up posters to aid the search. This one could be very useful indeed. Akkarin felt the conversation drawing to a close, "Any more ideas?" asked Lorlen. _Now or never – they'll spend weeks walking around those tunnels and I can't have them finding out just how far they extend,_ he quietly broke through the discussion, "This girl must have a presence. She is untrained, and would not know how to hide it – or even that she has one. Has anyone looked for it yet?" _Except me_, he added to himself.

It had the desired effect and Akkarin noted from his reaction that Rothen had possibly overlooked something in those tunnels. He could do no more. He nodded to Rothen and Dannyl as they took their leave.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: Every character, every storyline that matches with the original books all belong to Trudi Canavan. If you happen to stumble across this without reading the books, go read them! If you don't have the books to hand to read as well, go buy them! If you like the books, shout it from the rooftops (and Twitter and Facebook statuses). Let's make it as popular as Twilight and Harry Potter so that they'll make it into one or more films!**

*** Thanks to Nhu Angel for their factual brain! I shall attempt to adjust any factual errors as and when they are found. It's surprisingly hard to keep three books in your head, so help is greatly appreciated! **

**Apologies for the long break, the academic year begin once again and I find myself bogged down in planning for a few weeks. I'm contemplating a slight change in style as the story progresses as I don't want to repeat the books and as time goes on this will become more and more likely. So I'm planning on getting to a point where I just write sections from Akkarin's POV without elaborating on the story unnecessarily. Kind of like an addition to the book so you can read it alongside the books. Will see how it goes.***

Akkarin had spent the morning monitoring the mental search that Rothen had organised. When Rothen called an end to the morning's session, Akkarin took a coach to the King to report on progress. Needless to say the King had not been impressed by the lack of results so far, and had to be persuaded that it could take a number of weeks to find her with such little information. He had explained Dannyl's plan to put up posters and appeal to the people. The King had been most reluctant to be seen needing help, but his advisors saw to it that he saw reason. Akkarin was grateful that in some things he could rely on them. He had to report back in two days with a progress report and he had no idea if he would have anything to report.

A mental communication between Dannyl and Rothen had alerted Akkarin to the crowds outside the Guild gates before he reached them. Not wanting to open the gates, thus enabling the crowds into the Guild, he redirected the coach to the Market. Taking off his black magician's robes, leaving him in a pair of casual trousers and a shirt, he left the coach driver with instructions to wait until he returned and headed off into the market. The market place was visited by a range of classes from slum dwellers to servants of the houses. To anyone else he looked more like the latter, but he kept his head down and senses on high alert just in case anyone tried something foolish.

The first time he had visited these parts of the city as High Lord, he had invented a story about wanting foreign delicacies from his travels. As such he always stopped at an Elynian stall on the edge of the market and bought a range of pastries to take back as evidence of his trip so as to avoid raising suspicions. He had no illusions that the previous High Lord didn't venture in to the city in search of other delicacies, and he hoped that either story was enough to deter any followers. Plus the pastries were good and Takan always seemed to like them.

Making his way down to the Marina, he stopped at a stall selling Lonmar cloths, not cheap to acquire, but the information he would get in return was worth the cloth's weight in silver. It wasn't really a trade, more like an excuse and a gift to the person who provided him with information that he needed.

A ringing bell attached to the door announced Akkarin's arrival in the small office of the shipyard registrar, Mr Wattern. They had first crossed paths during Akkarin's childhood when the Delvon family had taken a boat trip to Greyfort, a Kyrilian city on the border of Elyne. It was a short trip, two days travelling, stopping for just a few days to see the sights and then two days back. Mr Wattern had been the navigator of the ship they travelled on and had kept Akkarin amused with tales of his travels, thus sparking his own interest in the surrounding countries. He had often visited Wattern on his free days as a novice to hear about his more recent travels.

While Akkarin had been away on his own travels, Wattern had met a woman, settled down and taken a less risky desk job. He now held responsibility for registering everyone who landed at the Marina, and everyone who left. A few months after Akkarin had returned, broken from his journeys, he had found himself sitting on the dockside watching the boats coming and going, when Wattern had sat himself down beside him and renewed their friendship. While Akkarin would steer clear of some parts of his travels, those that he could never disclose, he still enjoyed listening to Wattern's tales and regaling those of his own that were pleasant enough to recall. He felt a sense of freedom when with Wattern, accompanied with a sense of guilt that he couldn't do the same with Lorlen. Wattern never pushed into those gaps that Akkarin created, whereas he knew Lorlen would, and he didn't want to push Lorlen away anymore than he had done already.

Through this friendship, Wattern became an important, yet unknowing, ally for Akkarin. He visited every few weeks to maintain the friendship, dropping off the cloths for Wattern's wife and growing children, and to check the registration book for any visitors from Sachakan. In the past five years only three Sachakans had travelled to Imardin by boat. It wasn't the most sensible route from Sachaka, with Merchants choosing to travel by road entering via the north or south paths. Those who came by boat were either on a round trip via Elyne, or trying to sneak in unnoticed. It was the latter Akkarin was interested in.

Akkarin had tracked down the three Sachakans with the help of Ravi, the thief, and he had been relieved to find that, so far, all three were innocent Sachakans, on travels of their own or Merchants hoping to make more money from selling Elynian goods than the lesser known Sachakan goods. It had been over a year since the last visitor, but Akkarin continued to monitor the records never-the-less. Today threw up no new arrivals and Akkarin enjoyed catching up with Wattern before going for a stroll along the Marina's edge.

~o~O~o~

The sun was setting over the Palace as Akkarin's coach passed by on the way home to the Guild. Waiting at the gates for him was Lorlen. Akkarin sighed, anticipating the worst and stepped out onto the cobbles.

"Is it bad, or terrible news?" he enquired wryly.

"Rothen has made little progress today; Dannyl has been interviewing hoardes of the lower classes in guard halls with help from the otherwise inactive members of the guild; and Rothen has put in a claim for the girl's guardianship." Lorlen rattled off like a shopping list.

Akkarin chuckled, "I wondered how long it would take Rothen to make it official. I just hope he's prepared for what he's letting himself in for!"

"He certainly has a knack for choosing the difficult ones." Lorlen replied.

"Dinner? Takan hasn't yet started."

Lorlen looked at Akkarin as if to ask how he could possibly know that and then thought better of it. "That would be nice."


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Every character, every storyline that matches with the original books all belong to Trudi Canavan. If you happen to stumble across this without reading the books, go read them! If you don't have the books to hand to read as well, go buy them! If you like the books, shout it from the rooftops (and Twitter and Facebook statuses). Let's make it as popular as Twilight and Harry Potter so that they'll make it into one or more films!**

It was the end of a long week with little progress. The numbers of magicians helping with the search was rapidly dwindling and the girl appeared to have stopped using her magic. In the back of Akkarin's mind, he hoped that she had stopped of her own free will, and not because someone else had found her before they had.

To keep himself busy after his lack-of-progress meeting with the King, Akkarin made an unexpected visit to his family home, the House of Delvon. Situated more out of the way than the most prominent houses, the house was built using modern magical architecture techniques of harnessing the stone's energy to change its shape appropriately, then holding it altogether using the material's resonant energy. All the houses in the inner circle were made using such techniques but in the time line of magicians, it was a relatively new technique. It was an expensive method as it required magicians to build the structure, and required a constant cycle of magicians to ensure that no stone was left unattended, lest it fall before it was secured in place. Akkarin personally found them pretentious and preferred simpler, natural designs he had seen in other countries.

The doorman bowed low as Akkarin walked up the steps to the house. He hadn't visited for some time and he knew his parents would prefer it if he kept more in touch, if only so that they could have an excuse to hound him about marriage proposals. He understood that they received far more grief about his chosen solitude than he did. With his promotion to High Lord, the House of Delvon had risen in the ranks of the upper class dramatically. Not bad for a second son. The house was surprisingly quiet though and Akkarin felt apprehensive. Something didn't feel right, but he couldn't work out what. Maybe he had just been away for too long and the house was beginning to feel unfamiliar.

Quietly and tentatively, Akkarin made his way around the house, first checking the drawing room, then the dining room, before moving onto the kitchen. A handful of servants were busy cleaning cloths and scrubbing the kitchen thoroughly though most would be at market at this time in the morning. Akkarin made some enquiries as the whereabouts of his parents, and was informed that his parents were away visiting the eldest Delvon son, Toriken and his family, in the town of Devlin. They were due back the next day. Relaxing his muscles, Akkarin nodded and made his way out of the kitchen and up the stairs to his old room.

It wasn't really his actual room anymore, given that he'd moved into the Guild grounds at the age of sixteen and never slept here since, but it was where he had spent his childhood and teenage years. It still held many memories and souvenirs of his family travels; items that he couldn't take with him due to lack of space as a novice, and that he didn't have space for in his residence now. He was a different person now too, and the souvenirs served as a painful reminder of how much he had changed. His parents weren't to know this though, and kept the room as he left it, knowing he would take things as he wished. There were enough spare rooms in the house to host successfully without disturbing his room.

Walking around the room, Akkarin ran his fingers along the spines of his old holiday diaries, pausing at the first one he wrote at the age of eight when the family went to the neighbouring town of Ferryrest. Situated just over the marina, the family had chosen to take a short boat trip across instead of driving all the way around and over the river bridge further north. Akkarin had relished the feeling of the sea breeze, even though the experience was brief. In Ferryrest they had spent many days and nights socialising with the houses there and Akkarin had met his first magician. He didn't remember who it was, or why he was there, but he took home with him the feeling of awe and wonder at the presence of this man, splendid and so sure of himself.

The wardrobe was pretty bare, apart from Akkarin's novice robes that he had sent home with his parents when he graduated and changed to his full robes of red, the robes of a warrior. It had been a difficult decision to make as he had equal interest in becoming a healer and a warrior. Lorlen was training to be a healer and it seemed right to let him shine on his own and the role of a warrior held the promise of more exciting challenges. These too hung in the wardrobe, long forgotten and dejected. Akkarin could almost see them asking him what went wrong. Wasn't it enough? You had to go looking for more.

Sighing, Akkarin shut the door on the accusing robes and moved to sit on the bed. He'd only worn the robes for a few days after graduation before packing up to go travelling. Everything he owned had been sent back to his parents for storage. The plan was to only be away for a couple of years to see more of the countries he'd briefly seen as a child. Thanks to a stupid reckless decision, Akkarin had returned after five years, altered in more ways than the eye could see. He hadn't been well enough to collect his robes from his parents initially and had then borrowed some from other magicians at the guild for the few weeks between recovering and being announced High Lord.

Akkarin rubbed his hands across his face as if trying to rub away the age and weariness. Slowly standing up he checked his appearance in the mirror and retied his hair into its long ponytail. He may be only thirty but right now he felt more like fifty. Pulling his shoulders back, he moved to the window that overlooked the Delvon gardens.

The sun shone down on the wild garden. While it looked disorganised, the garden was actually well trained with large trellises forcing the exotic climbing flowers to create a canopy across the width of the garden. Behind it was a more open lawn area where Akkarin played with Toriken until the eldest became more interested in women and alcohol. Then he was left to play in the garden alone.

Akkarin's vision blurred and his head buzzed with magic. It didn't last long, and Akkarin groaned as he felt a real headache forming. He drew on a little magic to heal the ache, before turning away from the window. As he closed the bedroom door behind him, he consoled himself with the thought that she was at least alive, or had been a minute ago. He needed to check in with Lorlen.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: Every character, every storyline that matches with the original books all belong to Trudi Canavan. If you happen to stumble across this without reading the books, go read them! If you don't have the books to hand to read as well, go buy them! If you like the books, shout it from the rooftops (and Twitter and Facebook statuses). Let's make it as popular as Twilight and Harry Potter so that they'll make it into one or more films!**

As he made his way back to the Guild Akkarin tuned in to any mental communications to and from Rothen, Dannyl and Lorlen. There was little to be found, but he could confirm that the girl hadn't been found yet, Dannyl was somewhere in the slums – the lack of detail would suggest he was getting closer to the thieves, and, as he reached the Guild, he heard Lorlen being called to mentally. Lorlen appeared to be near the caller as he didn't respond mentally.

Akkarin couldn't face much tonight in his melancholy mood, and the headache he had pushed away earlier was back with a vengeance. Making his way quietly through the Guild gates and turning to the right towards his residence, Akkarin saw Lorlen's hurried steps and his companion of Lord Fergun. Apparently Lorlen didn't want to speak to Fergun today, which would explain why Fergun had needed to call out to him. It was hard to ignore people when you could communicate mentally. Sighing to himself, he stopped outside his residence. Drawing himself up, he waited for the pair to walk closer.

"Administrator."

Lorlen jumped at the mention of his title and spun to look in the direction from whence it had come. Akkarin noticed him relax and take on a barely concealed beg for rescue as he registered his presence.

"You are late for our meeting. I assume Lord Fergun has been keeping you?"

"No, no, High Lord," stuttered Fergun while lifting up from his bow. He visibly wilted under the glare Akkarin was giving him. If he couldn't sleep off this headache, Fergun would deal with the consequences. "I was just talking to the Administrator while …" Fergun's sentence tailed off as Akkarin turned away and headed into his residence without hearing him out. Lorlen followed him in and shut the door. Akkarin walked further into the room and, swaying, sunk into his favourite armchair putting his head in his hands.

"We, we weren't actually meeting, were we?" Lorlen gingerly asked, still standing by the door.

"No, Lorlen, we were not, and should my head choose to get any worse we won't be meeting for a good few days. That damned girl and her magic is doing my head in. I assumed you wanted rescuing by the puppy dog look in your eyes and offered you an escape. You are welcome to stay until Fergun has gone, but I will be poor company tonight."

Lorlen put his things down on the floor out of the way and tentatively moved into the room. He made his way over to Akkarin and put his hand on his shoulder. Akkarin flinched at the touch and immediately sent up protective barriers in case Lorlen was trying to read his mind.

"Ow!" Lorlen cried as he pulled his hand away. "Akkarin! What is with you? I'm just trying to relieve the worst of the headache."

"Sorry" Akkarin mumbled and lowered his barriers. He swallowed the flinch as Lorlen touched him again, but he knew he would feel tense to him. He heard Lorlen sigh in exasperation before feeling the healing energy flow towards the pain behind his eyes. The pain dulled a little and the nausea dissipated enough for him to be able to think reasonably. He knew he looked like death, but he forced himself to look up at Lorlen nevertheless.

"There are advantages to having an excellent healer as your best friend," he tried to smile.

"Bed. Now." Lorlen ordered, his nervousness gone, "I will inform Takan you are unwell. I will also check up on you first thing tomorrow morning. Do not, I stress that bit, do _not_ try and do anything but sleep tonight."

"Yes mum" Akkarin muttered good-naturedly. He stood, still swaying a little, and made his way towards the upstairs doorway.

In his room his head hit the pillow and he was out cold.

~o~O~o~

Akkarin had little idea how long he had slept for, it was now dark outside. All he knew was that he had been rudely awoken by yet another buzz of magic. His senses were on alert now, and despite the throbbing in his head, he was failing to go back to sleep.

Summoning his servant, Akkarin sat up in bed and created a dim globe light. He turned it down a little as the light was still hurting his eyes. A knock at the door alerted him to the presence of Takan and he called out for him to enter rather than use magic to open the door. He needed his energy.

"Master, you look" Takan swallowed his words and looked down at the floor. An awkward silence ensued. Breaking it, Akkarin chose to finish the sentence with the truth, after all Takan was the only one who knew him fully. "Terrible, I know." Takan looked up in surprise. "The buzzes of magic are stronger than standard slave magic. She's going to be the death of me!"

Takan shook his head and left the room. He soon reappeared with a tray of soup and bread, simple but nutritious. "You require my energy master." Takan stated quietly. Akkarin looked at Takan directly, "Thank you Takan, but such measures should only be used when necessary. I don't think this is one of those situations."

"Master", Takan quickly continued, "Should anything else happen tonight, you are not strong enough, you need my energy, you need to recover."

Akkarin stared at Takan. Takan stood his ground and stared back.

Akkarin sighed and motioned his agreement. Takan hurried away and came back with a large leather pouch. Akkarin swallowed a shudder as he opened the pouch and drew out a dagger. The handle glittered with gems of red and green, while the curved blade looked like the new moon shining brightly, but this was far more sinister. Takan dropped to one knee and held out his wrist.

"I do wish you'd stop that you know," he gently joked with his friend. Takan just smiled and waited, still. Akkarin carefully drew the blade across Takan's arm, feeling disgust as Takan tried to smother a gasp at the pain. As the blood appeared, he pressed his hand to the cut gently but firmly. He extended his senses to encompass Takan's vitality and drew on the large store of locked up magical power of his friend and servant. Having left Takan with enough strength to finish his jobs and head to bed, Akkarin rechanneled his senses to the cut and using a little magic, knitted the skin and nerves back together.

Akkarin was always unable to look at his friend, servant, ally, saviour, after hurting him so, and as per normal, Takan stood up quietly, wished his master and friend a goodnight and disappeared.

He sat still in silence for a minute or two before getting up abruptly, letting out an almighty yell and throwing his soup bowl across the room where it smashed against the wall.

Feeling slightly better, Akkarin took stock. He drew enough magic to chase away the headache once and for all, and then he stretched his inner barrier to hide the increase in his power from anyone who might get near enough to sense it. He had only forgotten to do it once since he had returned to Imardin. Lord Balkan had sensed his power and he'd ended up as the High Lord. After all, he had enough power for more than four normal magicians stored up within him when he returned, but the Guild had assumed it was all his naturally. And to put them straight would mean his execution. Now, it was one of the first things he did after drawing energy from another. He didn't really need all of the power Takan had to offer but he could store it and ensure that he was strong enough to fight the next Sachakan slave that would come looking for him. Plus Takan would have just pestered him into taking it later if he realised he still had a lot of energy left.

Picking up the dagger, Akkarin washed it in his night bowl and carefully put it back into its pouch. He left his room and headed down two floors to his basement room. He put his hand to the handle and pushed. Only the residents of this house had access to this room. Here he kept his more personal magical items, his cloak for the tunnels and this is where the entrance to the tunnels was. As such, the basement door was kept magically locked from both sides to protect those inside the house. Akkarin reattached the dagger sheath to the leather belt hidden under his cloak and headed back up the stairs, locking the door behind him. Very much unable to sleep, buzzing from the increase in power, Akkarin headed to the library to catch up on some reading.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: Every character, every storyline that matches with the original books all belong to Trudi Canavan. If you happen to stumble across this without reading the books, go read them! If you don't have the books to hand to read as well, go buy them! If you like the books, shout it from the rooftops (and Twitter and Facebook statuses). Let's make it as popular as Twilight and Harry Potter so that they'll make it into one or more films!**

***Thanks to those who are offering knowledge and reviews. All is much appreciated. I fear I may have to take a break and just work my way through the books to avoid the factual errors creeping in! But if you're happy with me going back and correcting them, I'm happy too.***

The second week had only got worse for Akkarin. The girl had certainly resurfaced and was freely practising with magic. For a couple of days Akkarin had been caught unawares with the smattering of buzzes to his temples. His teeth were not fairing well from having to clench down hard on them to stop those around him noticing his discomfort. The slum girl also didn't appear to be aware of time as she disturbed him at all hours, leading to sleepless nights. Now, he was in a foul mood, exhausted, and petrified that the city was now in very grave danger indeed. He only hoped that Thief Ravi was upholding his end of the deal they made and was keeping watch on any newcomers to town. Takan was giving him his energy nightly now as Akkarin fought off exhaustion and headaches daily. While it strengthened him, it made him feel awful emotionally. It was a severe strain on their nerves and relationship.

As the interruptions grew in number, Akkarin had sought refuge in his residence where the only person known to visit him was Lorlen. It seemed he need not have worried himself though as even the administrator had been too busy to notice his absence. _I'd been away for three years and no one had thought anything strange, what difference would one week make?_ Akkarin thought bitterly.

It was a Fourday, and the night room would be filled with gossips and searchers all desperate to find out what was going on. Feeling agitated, Akkarin got up and made his way across the gardens to find out too.

~o~O~o~

Lorlen met Akkarin as he came in through the back door to the night room. It wasn't too busy yet and, scanning the room, Akkarin spotted Rothen. He sent Lorlen to fetch him while he took his usual seat and took a glass of wine from the nearby servant. The atmosphere in the room changed as the magicians realised that he was there. _Some things will not be said tonight then_. He looked up to watch Rothen make his way over behind Lorlen, followed by Dannyl. He nodded acknowledging their presence and let Lorlen take lead of the discussion.

Not much progress had been made it seemed. He took a sip of the wine. Grimacing at the acidity of the cheaper wine, he thought to his bottle of Anuren Dark sitting in the residence.

"A rogue?" Rothen looked at Akkarin briefly, seemingly unable to make eye contact for long. "Do you think there is reason to suspect we have one now?"

"I have sensed someone using magic," Akkarin informed them quietly, knowing full well that the rest of the room was trying their hardest to listen in on the conversation; he didn't need to project for them all to hear. "Not much, and not for long. I believe she is experimenting alone, since a teacher would have instructed her to hide her activities by now." _And in some ways, I wish that were the case_, Akkarin thought to himself, feeling the tiredness renew itself. He briefly closed his eyes and drew on a little magic to push away the exhaustion.

When he looked up, Rothen was just staring at the High Lord in amazement and confusion, with a question forming on his lips. _Oh no. Do not ask me how I know,_ Akkarin tried to subconsciously communicate to Rothen. "That is … interesting news," Rothen broke away from the stare. Akkarin took a deep breath and turned to Dannyl who had asked a question. Mulling it over he thought over what they might do that was within in the realms of a Guild magician.

"She is using magic in short bursts, sometimes a single occurrence, sometimes several times an hour. You would sense them if you were waiting and alert to them, but you would not have time to find and capture her unless she used her power for a longer period."

Dannyl came up with a surprisingly good plan. Akkarin was bemused that he hadn't thought of it himself. _I must be more tired than I thought. That is not good news_, he mused. Akkarin nodded his agreement to the plan and placed her in the northern section of the outer circle. She hadn't really moved out of that section in the last couple of weeks. Dannyl requested permission to disguise themselves. Thinking back to his threadbare cloak and his visits to the market, he smiled to himself and informed Dannyl that cloaks should be sufficient.

The conversation drew to a more positive closure.

"I must say," Lorlen leant back in his chair, "I never thought I'd be happy to learn that our little runaway has started to use her powers." _Oh yes, ecstatic_, Akkarin groaned inwardly. He wasn't going to get much sleep tonight.


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: Every character, every storyline that matches with the original books all belong to Trudi Canavan. If you happen to stumble across this without reading the books, go read them! If you don't have the books to hand to read as well, go buy them! If you like the books, shout it from the rooftops (and Twitter and Facebook statuses). Let's make it as popular as Twilight and Harry Potter so that they'll make it into one or more films!**

The Guild was returning to normal despite the lack of progress in finding the girl. The winter was hitting hard and today brought freezing winds and icy rain that felt as if it would burn your skin upon impact. There were just a handful of magicians left searching in the slums, with a couple more volunteers questioning the dwindling number of informers in the guard halls. On the plus side, the girl was using her magic in batches now and Rothen had been co-ordinating the team well. Akkarin had been following their progress by listening in on their conversations. She hadn't moved location for a good few days and today they had pinpointed her to a much smaller area.

With the increase of magic spurts from the rogue, Akkarin had hardly slept for the past week. Her timing was still erratic, suggesting she was below ground, the lack of movement suggested that a Thief now had her under his wing. He hoped that his deal with the Thief Ravi had not been compromised; these circumstances had not been considered for discussion when they agreed to help each other all those years ago. Akkarin had a little faith still and today he was going to need to test that deal.

The High Lord had been to the King in the morning to report on progress. At least it looked as though they were making headway today and the King was, on balance, pleased with progress. Akkarin had diverted the coach to the market place for his weekly check-in with Wattern and now, on his way back to the Guild, Akkarin mulled over his findings. While he looked out of the carriage, watching servants and delivery boys running through the streets hunting for cover, he was missing his usual feeling that spring could not come soon enough. Winter was usually too stifling for him, adding to the despair and depression he suffered from, but today he could not shake the feeling that he should appreciate the beauty of the season while he could afford to. It was a morbid feeling that left him in a state of emotional imbalance.

The coach arrived at The Guild and Akkarin disembarked throwing up a shield to keep the rain off. Avoiding eye contact with the few magicians out in the courtyard he marched to his residence and, once inside, called to Takan before heading down into the basement room. From a shelf opposite the windows, he pulled down a ceramic lidded jar and pulled out three blue dried flowers. They were Laxens - a herb left to grow wild within the less well-tended gardens of the Houses and around a small set of tombstones found within the Guild grounds. They were stunning to look at in the height of spring and were accompanied with a fragrance of spices and burnt sand.

Takan appeared at the doorway and Akkarin silently handed him the three Laxens. The servant frowned at his master before grabbing a rough threaded cloak from the back of the door. Akkarin moved to the back of the room. After a short pause, the hidden doorway slide aside and he made his way inside. Takan followed still frowning but saying nothing. Akkarin walked a short distance before stopping and removing his protection wards to enable Takan to move in and out safely. Turning the final corner he stopped at a pile of rocks and exerted his will to make them into a set of stairs. Akkarin turned to Takan, who was looking at the Laxens in his hands as if they carried the worst of news, and in a very real way, they did just that.

_You remember what to do? I know my friend, it has been a while._

Takan looked up slowly nodding before walking past and making his way up the stairs.

_I will put the wards back up upon your return. Travel safely._

Takan stepped through the hole at the top of the stairs and disappeared from view. In his mind, Akkarin watched him to ensure the tunnel's keepers let him through without issue, before heading back to his residence.

Back in his basement room, Akkarin put the lid back on the Laxens and headed up to the main guestroom on the ground floor. He just hoped Ravi was still up to the task, or things would start getting difficult in Imardin. Sighing, Akkarin pulled out a glass along with a half-full bottle of Anuren Dark and sat down heavily in his favourite armchair. He knew it was far too early for drinking, but it was one of those days.

Anyone who might have been brave enough to peer through the windows of the High Lord's Residence at that moment would have been bemused to see him frozen in time, empty wine glass in his left hand, bottle of wine in his right, and with a glazed expression on his face.

Akkarin was listening intently to the magicians close in on the girl in the slums. It was hectic with Dannyl getting buried under a collapsed tunnel before freeing himself, and then Jolen was on his own. Akkarin listened and watched as Jolen entered a room that looked like quite luxurious for a slum girl. He could sense Jolen's disbelief that a mere slum girl could live like this and then his amusement as he searched the walls for hidden doorways and found the one he was wanting. There was a presence behind this one. Akkarin paid attention to the mechanism of the door as Jolen made light work of it, such knowledge though easy to obtain at the time, could make the difference between life and death in his line of work.

Akkarin saw, through Jolen's eyes, the girl running ahead of a Lonmar man, who he assumed was a thief given his claims about trespassing on his domain. The next few minutes went by quickly: Jolen tried to persuade the girl that they meant her no harm; the thief honourably defended her.; Akkarin snorted at the thought of a mere thief up against a magician of the Guild; then, everything went black surrounded by a strong emotion of fear. A heartbeat or two later, Jolen renewed his link. Akkarin laughed out loud as he found out the magician had been sent to the garbage chutes of a bolhouse! Coming out his glaze, he turned his attention back to the wine and chuckled at the thought of the stories that would grace the night room this week!

The girl had got away again, but they were getting closer. He only hoped that she chose to lay low for a while after such a close call. He needed to be able to concentrate on tracking a new, far more deadly magician who had arrived by boat yesterday morning.


End file.
